Momentum changes in The National Football League as quick as it does on
Wall Street. Within a flash you can go from the outhouse to the
penthouse. This scenario applies to The St. Louis Rams. In 2009 The Rams
finished the season with a record of 1-15 under first year head coach
Steve Spagnuolo. The Rams earned the first overall pick and drafted
Oklahoma Sooner quarterback Sam Bradford. Last season The Rams enjoyed a
turnaround which left them one game shy of the playoffs with a 7-9
record. If The Rams had defeated The Seattle Seahawks in the final game
of the regular season they would have been playoff bound. When the
season started, not too many figured The Rams would have that chance,
even in a weak NFC West.
Bradford enjoyed a good rookie campaign in which the former Heisman
Trophy winner and reigning Offensive Rookie of The Year threw for over
3,500 yards. Although Bradford is only in his second year, he might be
the leader of the quarterback crop in this division. The Seahawks are
trying to decide on Tavaris Jackson or Charlie Whitehurst which isn’t
much of a debate as both quarterbacks are career backups. Aside from
having to avoid gunshots on game day, The San Francisco 49ers are still
in search of a quarterback as Alex Smith just isn’t the guy. The Arizona
Cardinals just acquired Kevin Kolb from The Philadelphia Eagles and I
am not ready to drink the kool-aid on Kolb. Seven wins won this division
last year and there’s a good chance that nine could do it this season.
Bradford has taken the next step in his maturation process by assuming
the play calling as far adjustments for his offensive line. Bradford is
the leader of the offense and his teammates are responding to him.
Offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur left to become the head coach of The
Cleveland Browns and Josh McDaniels steps in to fill the void. McDaniels
may not have been the best head coach during his short time with The
Denver Broncos, but he was the coordinator for the most prolific offense
in history with The 2007 New England Patriots that racked up 589
points. Now McDaniels is responsible for helping Bradford’s progression
as a quarterback.
The Rams had the opportunity to sign wide receiver Sidney Rice before he
chose Seattle. The Rams were able to lure Mike Sims-Walker away from
The Jacksonville Jaguars to be an outside target for Bradford. Last
season The Rams finished 26th in the league on converting third downs
and the arrival of Sims-Walker should help that as he knows how to move
the chains. The Rams drafted wide receiver Austin Pettis in the third
round this year. Pettis ran away from defenders on the blue turf during
his collegiate days at Boise State and now he is indoors at The Edward
Jones Dome which should not be a problem.
As always The Rams will rely on Steven Jackson at running back. Jackson
only averaged 3.8 yards per carry last season and The Rams will need a
bigger output from him and his dreadlocks. Jackson won’t have to carry
the load by himself this year. Former Atlanta Falcon Jerious Norwood
will team with Jackson in the backfield. Jackson carried the ball 330
times in 2010. If Jackson can cut that down to about 270 this year he
should be fresher for the finish of the season.
Defensively The Rams finished last season with 43 sacks in Spagnuolo’s
blitz happy system . Chris Long switched from right defensive end to
left defensive and enjoyed a career high in sacks with 8.5. Road Warrior
Animal is proud to see that his son James Laurinaitis took his
intensity from the wrestling ring to the gridiron. Through two seasons
Laurinaitis has 205 tackles. The linebacker corps are deeper this year
with the acquisitions of Brady Poppinga and Ben Leber to provide The
Rams with veteran leadership.
The key for The Rams is to weather the storm which is the first half of
the season. In the first seven games, three of the opponents have won
three out of the last four Super Bowls in The New York Giants, New
Orleans Saints, and Green Bay Packers. The second half of the schedule
is loaded with divisional opponents which gives The Rams a chance to
catch their breath and make a playoff run. With all the heavy hitters in
the other three divisions of The NFC such as The Atlanta Falcons,
Philadelphia Eagles, and Chicago Bears, it is imperative for The Rams to
win their division as it most likely the only way for them to make the
postseason for the first time since 2004. This young team in St. Louis
is poised and ready for that.
9-7 most likely wins The NFC West and that would be an improvement from last year.
Soft division, too.